A special education teacher got the surprise of her life when a manager from The Home Depot took care of the charges of Mother’s Day gift supplies for her class.

Susana Morales, a CBI program teacher at Rosemead High School, was shopping on a budget for roses and plant soil on Thursday evening at 9700 Lower Azusa Road, when she was approached by store manager Chuck Freni.

“I asked him if he had plants for 99 cents and he said no and asked why,” Morales said.

Morales explained the project to Freni and told him that everything would be purchased with her own money. Determined not to let the teacher pay for the items, Freni told her that The Home Depot would sponsor it.

“The founders of The Home Depot established core values for the company and one of them is giving back to the community,” Freni said.

The store gave Morales 13 rose plants for her students along with dirt, soil and planting tools.

“We look for things like a teacher shopping out of her own pocket trying to help kids do something great for their moms on Mother’s Day,” Freni said.

“We like to do projects that impact people and it’s what The Home Depot was built on in 1979,” he said.

Morales was overwhelmed with joy and gratification for something she considers to be her own Mother’s Day gift.

“I feel very blessed and those are random, good things people do for others that should be publicized,” she said.

Morales said the students were very happy to see the donated roses.

“I’m glad we were able to help and it pleases us to know we made an impact,” Freni said.